CU students volunteer to rescue Civil War landmarks in Queens

Historic preservation planning student Sigrid Bergland '03 and HPP alumnus Rob O'Riordan remove dried leaves and debris from the battery walls and portals of Fort Totten as part of the weekend stabilization project. Behind them is HPP student Trina Meiser '03. The historic structures overlooking New York City's East River were used to protect the city from naval attacks during the Civil War. Photographs by Harvey Wang

Historic preservation planning student Kristen Brennan '02 cuts replacement boards for the rotted porch floor of the turn-of-the-century bachelor officers quarters at Fort Totten Battery in Queens. Behind her are other student and alumni volunteers and parks staff members who took part in the weekend stabilization project.

By Linda Myers

Civil War-era landmarks cared for by New York City's Parks Department will be protected for future generations thanks to a spring volunteer project initiated by Cornell historic preservation planning (HPP) students that took place April 12-14.

Fort Totten Battery, in Bayside, Queens, has been designated an official New York City landmark district, but there are no funds or plans to preserve it.

Constructed but left unfinished during the Civil War, the battery consists of two stories of arched openings, circular staircases, tunnels and magazine openings and is an ideal spot for the public to wander through, perhaps imagining the past and absorbing the history of the place, say the student volunteers. Between the Civil War and World War I, the battery was used, along with Fort Schuyler, to protect the entrance to the East River. In addition, turn-of-the-century army officers' quarters still can be found at the site.

Earlier this year, Cornell HPP students were hunting for a preservation project that they could accomplish over a long weekend entirely with volunteer labor and donated materials, similar to successful past student-initiated projects on Ellis Island. They were approached by planners with the City of New York Parks and Recreation Department, which will soon become the new steward of part of Fort Totten. Inspections of the site had shown several of the structures to be in hazardous states of disrepair, and the Parks planners worried about finding funds to halt the deterioration -- $10,000 or more, by some estimates.

The project was exactly what the students had been looking for. They hoped that stabilizing the site's battery walls and neglected historic buildings not only would preserve them for eventual restoration but would lead to city support for such a project and to use of the buildings by the public and nonprofit groups.

"We are thrilled that Cornell students and alumni volunteered to help us prepare historic Fort Totten for now and the future," said New York Parks Commissioner Adrian Benepe.

"We wanted this project to show that historically important structures like these can be saved through the efforts of those enthusiastic about preservation and history," said Trina Meiser, one of the Cornell students who coordinated the project. "The students have the skills and resources to take on such a project, and by allying with alumni, park staff and local supporters, they were able to carry out a restoration effort quickly and affordably."

The student volunteers did the work from Friday through Sunday, April 12-14, under the guidance of Michael Tomlan, Cornell associate professor and director of the HPP program, with assistance from HPP alumni, many of them professional preservationists, and Parks staff. They repaired railings and removed overgrown vegetation from the granite water battery overlooking the East River, making it safer for visitors.

They also took advantage of balmy weather on Saturday and Sunday to work on an abandoned brick, neoclassical revival-style building, one of several that once housed bachelor army officers. They stabilized the wraparound porches, reshaped the classical Doric columns that had split apart and replaced rotted floorboards with new wood so the house would be safe for public entry and preserved for future restoration. Scraping off peeling paint from the trim took longer than planned, but they were able to complete the first story as well as prime it.

"The contrast between the first-story porch that we repaired and the decrepit second-story porch was really striking and showed what vast improvements preservation efforts can make," said Meiser. "The local people who use the park on the weekends stopped by frequently to see what was going on and to ask when the rest of the house would be restored."

Those responses were exactly what the students hoped to hear. "We are hoping that the results will make a big enough impact on visitors to create support for the complete revitalization of the entire fort area," said Meiser.